FTF

[TrueJim]

His website places a reasonably heavy emphasis on the fact that he offers kids classes, which previously he seemed to only grudgingly tolerate. He's always been absolutely insistent that kids should never, ever get black belts -- I'm curious to see how long he will maintain that position now that he has his own school and a cadre of child students. Is he going to make 6 year old Elijah wait 10 years for his black belt?

 

[blackbeltsomeday]

His latest video on the martialartstutor channel addresses that question toward the end.

 

[ScorpionShawn]

Just...wow.

Functional Taekwondo Federation:

mysite

If this person looks familiar to you, it's the same person who made the notorious "taekwondo is USELESS for self-defense" video:

There are so many flaws with this idea, it's difficult to know where to even begin to unpack this:

• You don't need to create a whole new federation just to offer online instruction. If what the guy wants to do is improve taekwondo instruction via better online content, he doesn't need a federation to do that.
• Likewise you don't need to create a while new "federation" just to focus on self-defense and practical applications. Plenty of schools within existing federations focus on self-defense and practical applications. If he wants to create great online instruction for self-defense, all he needs is a YouTube channel, not a federation.
• Also, it's not a "federation" just because you have a logo and a website. Until you get some schools in the organization, it's not a federation. General Choi didn't spend his years in Malaysia coming up with logos, and he didn't have a federation just because he'd designed some teul. You need followers to have a federation.
• Along those same lines, rather than focusing first on the logo and the website, why not come up with a curriculum as the first step? Wouldn't that be more logical?
• As with his original "taekwondo is useless" video, this guy seems to believe that "taekwondo is broken and needs to be fixed" -- but he's basing that opinion on just his limited experience at the few schools he knows. What makes him think that all taekwondo everywhere is as broken as the taekwondo that he's seen?
• And even if we too were to believe that "taekwondo is broken and needs to be fixed", why would we turn to this person to fix it for us?
• And even if we were to have this person "fix" taekwondo for us, why would we think the result should even still be called taekwondo? He talks about getting rid of forms and focusing on just his conception of "practical" techniques. He might as well just make up a new name for his martial art.
• According to his video, this person doesn't even have his own school? Why would he want to start a whole new federation when he hasn't even succeeded at starting a single school? Does he even know what a federation is, and what it takes to operate one? And why should WE believe that a person who isn't even running his own school is qualified to run a federation, to the extent that we'd want to join his federation?
• And I guess this guy wants lots of schools to put up his FTF banner...but to what end? I guess the idea is that if you see an FTF banner in a school, you'll know the focus is self-defense? If that's your interest, why not just ask about self-defense when you're signing up at a school in the first place? What does the banner prove?

I admire this person's passion, and I wish him well. In any case, it's not a "federation" until you have some schools following you (as opposed to just having a logo and a website), so this guy's got a lo-o-o-ong road ahead of him I'm afraid.

Nah this kid is womb ****. Trying to speak about street vs sport and I bet he has no exp in the street. He spends alot of his time telling you all these arts TKD and Hapkido dont work lol He says he hasn't looked to much into other schools that are what he calls legit. Yet he wants people to join his FTF. Got to do better than hating to get me involved.

 

[ScorpionShawn]

 

[CB Jones]

I have a simple belief... nothing is impressive when it is based on demeaning someone else or their ability/knowledge to make yourself look good.

And basically that is what FTF has attempted.

If you have a great product it will stand for itself.

 

[blackbeltsomeday]

I agree that hating is not the way to go, but we will just have to see what happens. I follow lots of martial arts Youtube channels for fun, and I do find his pretty entertaining. I actually travel to Dallas a couple time per year for work, so maybe I will visit his school when I am there next time and see what he's all about.

 

[TrueJim]

His latest video on the martialartstutor channel addresses that question toward the end.

I just watched Taylor's latest video. This is the same guy who told other martial artists of the world to "Get your instructors d*ck out of your mouth" in one of his previous YouTube videos (that he's since taken down), and who claimed in multiple YouTube videos (and on his previous website) that most schools that teach kids are McDojos...

...and now in his latest video he's saying that he loves teaching kids, that that's how you pay the bills when you run a school, and that the haters can call him Barney the Dinosaur all they want.

This is a very big a change all within a year! What would be icing on the cake is a video that said, "You know what, I was wrong before. My bad".

What changed his opinion? Opening his own school, rather than just being a part-time instructor in other people's schools. It's amazing how things change when you start taking personal ownership of the experience of the kids that you're teaching.